Technology blog + Space | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog+science/space
model.DotcomContentType$TagIndex$@5595c236en-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2018Thu, 24 May 2018 20:05:52 GMT2018-05-24T20:05:52Zen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2018The Guardianhttps://assets.guim.co.uk/images/guardian-logo-rss.c45beb1bafa34b347ac333af2e6fe23f.pnghttps://www.theguardian.com
Facebook adds more ways to control news feed – today's Open Threadhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/nov/10/facebook-control-news-feed-open-thread
<p>Have your say on latest social network feature, as well as Apple iMessage, Blizzard on GamerGate, Amazon and more</p><p>The way Facebook curates the news feed of its users – through an algorithm designed to prioritise 300 updates a day out of 1,500-plus that you could see from friends and pages that you follow – has often been controversial.</p><p>Now the social network says it’s giving more control back to those users, or <a href="http://newsroom.fb.com/news/2014/11/news-feed-fyi-more-ways-to-control-what-you-see-in-your-news-feed/">as it put it in a blog post</a>: “more ways for you to control and give feedback on your News Feed”.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/nov/10/facebook-control-news-feed-open-thread">Continue reading...</a>FacebookInternetSocial networkingMediaGamergateActivision BlizzardAmazonEbooksGamesTechnologySpace3D printingMon, 10 Nov 2014 07:30:03 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/nov/10/facebook-control-news-feed-open-threadPhotograph: Lukas Schulze/Lukas Schulze/dpa/CorbisFacebook wants you to prune your news feed if you're bored by some updates.Photograph: Lukas Schulze/Lukas Schulze/dpa/CorbisFacebook wants you to prune your news feed if you're bored by some updates.Stuart Dredge2014-11-10T07:30:03ZJoin Sir Tim Berners-Lee for a day of inspiration at the Every Second Counts Forumhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/sep/30/-sp-tim-berners-lee-second-counts-forum
<p>**THIS EVENT IS NOW SOLD OUT** </p>
<p>Inventor of the World Wide Web joins space scientist Dr Maggie Aderin Pocock, musician Beardyman and the Rolex Awards for Enterprise’s young laureates on stage at November’s Every Second Counts Forum - and you can be there. Register in the form below</p><p><strong><em><strong>Shaping the future, when the future is already here</strong></em></strong></p><p>The Guardian and Observer are launching a half-day forum, sponsored by the <a href="http://www.rolexawards.com/" rel="nofollow">Rolex Awards for Enterprise</a>, aimed at aspiring future leaders in the fields of science and health, applied technology, exploration, the environment, and cultural heritage. If you’re aged between 20-30 and can demonstrate a working interest in one or more of these areas, you could attend. </p><p class="text">Please sign in to complete this form</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/sep/30/-sp-tim-berners-lee-second-counts-forum">Continue reading...</a>TechnologyInternetTim Berners-LeeSpaceScienceTue, 30 Sep 2014 10:11:44 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/sep/30/-sp-tim-berners-lee-second-counts-forumPhotograph: Andrew Brusso/ Andrew Brusso/CorbisSir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, will discuss the formative moments in his long and illustrious career.Photograph: Andrew Brusso/ Andrew Brusso/CorbisSir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, will discuss the formative moments in his long and illustrious career.Robin Hough2014-09-30T10:11:44ZBreakfast briefing: Obama kills moonshot 2.0, browser wars and Azurehttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2010/feb/02/breakfast-briefing
<p>• It's more than five years since George Bush <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/01/14/bush.space/">announced his plan to go back to the<strong> Moon </strong>by 2020</a> - but now Barack Obama has killed the plan, saying <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/02/science/02nasa.html">Nasa money should be spent on other projects instead</a>. Personally? I'm disappointed: Obama's plans, for now at least, don't really seem to include human space exploration of any sort, meaning an end to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constellation_program">Constellation</a>, the successor to the Space Shuttle programme. It may be pragmatic dream killed off.</p><p>• The browser wars continue apace, according to <a href="http://www.netmarketshare.com/report.aspx?qprid=0&amp;qptimeframe=M&amp;qpsp=132">new figures from NetMarketShare</a>. Internet Explorer has dropped to 62% of the market, with Firefox down to 24% and Google's Chrome up to just over 5%. Internet Explorer 8 is now apparently the most popular version of IE, outstripping IE6 (finally). </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2010/feb/02/breakfast-briefing">Continue reading...</a>SpaceNasaInternetMicrosoftCloud computingTechnologyTue, 02 Feb 2010 06:00:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2010/feb/02/breakfast-briefingBobbie Johnson, San Francisco2010-02-02T06:00:00ZTen years of technology: 2004https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/dec/17/technology-decade-2004
As the noughties come to a close, we take a look at the biggest technology stories of the decade - and how the Guardian reported them at the time<p>Five years ago the order of things as we know them started to fall into place; most of the services we're familiar with today were around, most of the companies were in place, most of the technologies we think of as cutting edge were already beginning to make a mark. Even Facebook was there, for goodness' sake (although I think we didn't make mention of it until <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2005/nov/24/elearning.innovations">2005</a>).</p><p>Turns out I made a mistake in yesterday's post. It was <em>2004</em> when I joined Online, not 2003... feels so long ago I had got the timeline mixed up. But still, the shift (which involved moving into a cold corner of the Guardian's main newsroom) felt like a big deal. If only I could remember when it happened!</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/dec/17/technology-decade-2004">Continue reading...</a>AppleiTunesGoogleMicrosoftMobile phonesSpaceThu, 17 Dec 2009 08:30:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/dec/17/technology-decade-2004Photograph: Ian Waldie/GettyApple CEO Steve Jobs in front of a projection of the iTunes website at the London launch of the iTunes store in the UK, German and France, June 15 2004. Photograph: Ian Waldie/GettyPhotograph: Ian Waldie/GettyApple CEO Steve Jobs in front of a projection of the iTunes website at the London launch of the iTunes store in the UK, German and France, June 15 2004. Photograph: Ian Waldie/GettyBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-12-17T08:30:00ZTen years of technology: 2003https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/dec/16/technology-decade-2003
As the noughties come to a close, we take a look at the biggest technology stories of the decade - and how the Guardian reported them at the time<p>Compared to the whirlwind that was the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/dec/11/technology-decade-2000">early</a> <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/dec/14/technology-decade-2001">part</a> of the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/dec/15/technology-decade-2002">decade</a>, trawling through the Guardian's archives from 2003 seems like a relatively sedate affair. The worst of the crash was over, the post 9/11 recession was abating (though admittedly the general headlines were dominated by the Iraq war and the "sexed up" dossier allegations) and things seemed to be settling down into a pattern that seems pretty familiar today.</p><p>For me personally, it was an important year. During the summer, I moved from the Guardian's Media desk to become the deputy editor of the Online section, as it was then known - that felt like a big deal (it was). Taking over from previous deputy Neil McIntosh (who went on to be a bigwig for Guardian.co.uk and now runs the Wall Street Journal's European website) I joined Vic Keegan and Jack Schofield.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/dec/16/technology-decade-2003">Continue reading...</a>TechnologyGoogleSpaceMicrosoftAppleiTunesAOLBroadbandWed, 16 Dec 2009 08:30:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/dec/16/technology-decade-2003Photograph: Kim Kulish/CorbisPhotograph: Kim Kulish/CorbisBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-12-16T08:30:00ZTech Weekly: Nasa crashes into the moon, and the MiFi gets a road testhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/audio/2009/oct/06/tech-weekly-podcast-nasa-lcross-mifi-wifi
<p>This Friday, a Nasa mission boldly goes where no one has gone before - by deliberately crashing a satellite into the moon's surface to see what happens. The <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/lcross/">LCROSS mission</a> is due for lunar impact, but it's not just about smash, bang, wallop. Your presenter, <strong>Bobbie Johnson</strong>, talks to Nasa scientist <strong>Dr Kim Ennico</strong> about the mission - and how it could herald new things for space exploration.</p><p>Elsewhere, <strong>Charles Arthur</strong> gets to grips with the <a href="http://www.three.co.uk/Mobile_Broadband/MiFi">new MiFi gadget from 3</a> - a gizmo that promises to turn you into a walking internet hotspot. Sounds like fun, but does it really work in real life?</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/audio/2009/oct/06/tech-weekly-podcast-nasa-lcross-mifi-wifi">Continue reading...</a>SpaceWifiMobile phonesBroadbandGadgetsTechnologyScienceNasaTue, 06 Oct 2009 21:30:50 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/audio/2009/oct/06/tech-weekly-podcast-nasa-lcross-mifi-wifiPhotograph: Michael O'Connell/Royal Observatory GreenwichThe dark areas that can be seen clearly on the moon’s surface in this photograph are vast plains of solidified lava. These are known as lunar seas (maria) because they were once believed to be filled with water. Unusually the moon is shown here during the day, through the Earth’s dark blue sky, giving it the appearance of rising mysteriously from shadow. Photograph: Michael O'Connell/Royal Observatory GreenwichPhotograph: Michael O'Connell/Royal Observatory GreenwichThe dark areas that can be seen clearly on the moon’s surface in this photograph are vast plains of solidified lava. These are known as lunar seas (maria) because they were once believed to be filled with water. Unusually the moon is shown here during the day, through the Earth’s dark blue sky, giving it the appearance of rising mysteriously from shadow. Photograph: Michael O'Connell/Royal Observatory Greenwich, technology correspondent2009-10-06T21:30:50ZBreakfast briefing: Was Georgia blogger target of online attacks?https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/aug/07/breakfast-briefing
<p>• The fallout from the widespread denial of service attacks that hit a number of major websites continues. After it emerged that <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/aug/06/facebook-twitter-google-attack">Google had also been targeted</a> along with <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/aug/06/twitter-data-computer-security">Facebook and Twitter</a>, speculation began to swirl . Facebook security chief Max Kelly told <strong>CNet</strong> that it was a strike <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10305200-245.html">targeted at a single user</a>, pro-Georgian blogger Cyxymu, while Bill Woodcock of Packet Clearing House told <strong>the Register</strong> that it was <a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/07/twitter_attack_theory/">a spam-based attack</a>. More details to follow, surely.</p><p>• Good news! Nasa says the Kepler space telescope - which is supposed to find new planets in distant space - works. Well, that's not to say it's actually found any planets, but <strong>Discover</strong> magazine has a very good explanation of <a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2009/08/06/kepler-works/">exactly how they've determined that it's going to succeed.</a></p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/aug/07/breakfast-briefing">Continue reading...</a>HackingInternetSpaceTechnologyFri, 07 Aug 2009 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/aug/07/breakfast-briefingBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-08-07T05:00:00ZBreakfast briefing: Bell rings on second round of the Apple v Palm scraphttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/jun/17/breakfast-briefing
<p><strong>Update: </strong> Somebody has a sense of humour: since publishing this post, it's emerged that the shuttle launch has been <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN0313466120090617">postponed</a>.</p><p>• The fight between Apple and Palm carries on, just as the <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10265918-37.html">iPhone 3.0 software gets released</a>. One of the tricks the Palm Pre has up its sleeve is that it <a href="http://nanocr.eu/2009/05/28/syncing-music-and-video-to-the-palm-pre/">can pretend to be an iPod</a> - therefore allowing people to carry on using iTunes to manage their media. But that pleasant surprise for switchers may not last long, after a <a href="http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3642">a signal from Apple</a> that "it does not provide support for, or test for compatibility wit, non-Apple digital media players". A warning to Palm? <strong>Daring Fireball</strong>'s <a href="http://daringfireball.net/linked/2009/06/16/apple-itunes-pre">John Gruber</a> certainly thinks so.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/jun/17/breakfast-briefing">Continue reading...</a>iPhoneAppleSpaceTechnologyWed, 17 Jun 2009 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/jun/17/breakfast-briefingBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-06-17T05:00:00ZBreakfast briefing: Palm gets an injection of O2, but Nasa kills life on Marshttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/26/breakfast-briefing
<p>• The long weekend may have missed the report from my colleague Richard Wray that <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2009/may/24/02-iphone-palm-pre">O2 has snagged exclusive rights to bring the Palm Pre to the UK</a>. Still no word on when the device - still not Euro-friendly - is due to launch outside north America, however.</p><p>• Is there life on Mars? Perhaps not, thanks to the robotic rovers sent by Nasa. According to New Scientist, plans to uncover lifeforms on the red planet could have backfired and <a href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20227094.500-mars-robots-may-have-destroyed-evidence-of-life.html">destroyed the evidence it was intended to discover</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/26/breakfast-briefing">Continue reading...</a>Mobile phonesGadgetsSpaceTechnologyTue, 26 May 2009 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/26/breakfast-briefingBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-05-26T05:00:00ZAir Force speaks out over the future of GPS... on Twitterhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/22/gps-air-force-twitter
<p>The rumblings over the future of <strong>GPS</strong> are continuing, with some of the major players finally getting involved in the debate over the future of satellite navigation tools.</p><p>To recap: a recent report by the US government accountability office suggested that overspending and mismanagement <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/may/19/gps-close-to-breakdown">could threaten the future of GPS</a>. It predicted that the reliability of satnav would fall <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/19/gps-satnav-breakdown">as low as 80% over the next five years</a>.</p><p>@lukeshepherd: We have the largest GPS constellation in history and active plans to mitigate any potential gap in coverage. </p><p>@usmcpablo: The issue is not whether GPS will stop working. There's only a small risk we will not continue to exceed our performance standard </p><p>Working very closely with the Air Force and its team, Boeing has taken aggressive steps to resolve the technical issues on IIF with a strong emphasis on Mission Assurance. Design changes were required to ensure performance over the satellite design life and have caused schedule delays, but these changes are in the final phase of implementation.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/22/gps-air-force-twitter">Continue reading...</a>GPSTwitterTechnologySpaceFri, 22 May 2009 07:00:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/22/gps-air-force-twitterPhotograph: NASA/APAn Iridium satellite in earth orbit. Photograph: NASA/APPhotograph: NASA/APAn Iridium satellite in earth orbit. Photograph: NASA/APBobbie Johnson, San Francisco2009-05-22T07:00:00ZIs GPS really 'too big to fail'?https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/19/gps-satnav-breakdown
<p>As I wrote this morning, a recent US congressional report says that the GPS system that <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/may/19/gps-close-to-breakdown">could be on the verge of breakdown</a>, thanks to a lack of proper investment.</p><p>It's a worrying possibility - not just for the <strong>Pentagon</strong>, which is having its ability to manage a complex service like GPS called into question, but for the companies that have built businesses on the solidity of the global positioning system.</p><p>"Based on the most recent satellite reliability and launch schedule data approved in March 2009, the estimated long-term probability of maintaining a constellation of at least 24 operational satellites falls below 95% during fiscal year 2010 and remains below 95% until the end of fiscal year 2014, at times falling to about 80%."</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/19/gps-satnav-breakdown">Continue reading...</a>GPSSpaceMobile phonesTechnologyTue, 19 May 2009 22:45:20 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/19/gps-satnav-breakdownPhotograph: Linda Nylind/GuardianUsing a satnavPhotograph: Linda Nylind/GuardianUsing a satnavBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-05-19T22:45:20ZBreakfast briefing: Can netbooks save the world? Not like thishttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/14/breakfast-briefing
<p>• Are netbooks going to save the computer industry? Not if figures from DisplaySearch are anything to go by. The Register points to their latest stats, which suggest that <a href="http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2009/05/13/q1_netbook_market_displaysearch/">netbook sales dropped 26% quarter-on-quarter</a>. Meanwhile, CNet reports Intel saying that when netbooks are <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-10239390-64.html">incorrectly sold as ordinary laptops</a>, return rates can run as high as 30%.</p><p>• Apple has <a href="http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2009/05/13wwdc.html">confirmed</a> that Steve Jobs won't be back at Apple in time to give the keynote at the Worldwide Developers Conference on 8th June. Phil Schiller, who took over on-stage duties in January, is stepping in again. Meanwhile analysts think we <em>will</em> see a new iPhone this summer - <a href="http://apple20.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2009/05/13/steve-jobs-new-iphone-coming-in-late-june-analyst/">but not until the end of next month</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/14/breakfast-briefing">Continue reading...</a>ComputingAppleSpaceTechnologyThu, 14 May 2009 05:00:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/14/breakfast-briefingBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2009-05-14T05:00:00ZThe first Twitter message from space - or is it?https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/13/twitter-in-space
<p>Forget demi-celebs like <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/apr/16/million-twitter-followers">Ashton Kutcher</a> (who?), National Treasures like <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/may/01/twitter-guardian-passes-stephen-fry">Stephen Fry</a> or even bona fide media moguls like <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/apr/18/oprah-twitter-backlash">Oprah Winfrey</a> - these days the real pioneers of <strong>Twitter</strong> are doing it from 350 miles above the Earth's surface.</p><p>Nasa astronaut <strong>Mike Massimino</strong> has sent the <a href="http://twitter.com/Astro_Mike/status/1777093627">first Twitter message from space</a> - telling a quarter of a million followers that, well, he's enjoying it up there.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/13/twitter-in-space">Continue reading...</a>TwitterSpaceScienceTechnologyNasaWed, 13 May 2009 05:35:20 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2009/may/13/twitter-in-spacePhotograph: Matt Stroshane/GettySpace Shuttle Atlantis blasts off from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. Photograph: Matt Stroshane/GettyPhotograph: Matt Stroshane/GettySpace Shuttle Atlantis blasts off from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. Photograph: Matt Stroshane/GettyBobbie Johnson, San Francisco2009-05-13T05:35:20ZVirgin Galactic tests rocket mothershiphttps://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/15/aeronautics-spaceexploration
Video evidence of Virgin Galactic's taxi test of its WhiteKnightTwo spaceplane has leaked out<p><a href="http://www.flightglobal.com/home/default.aspx">Flight International </a>has got hold of the <a href="http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2008/12/13/320125/world-exclusive-video-spaceshiptwo-mothership-runway.html">first video footage</a> of the aircraft that will carry <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/08/virgin-galactic-space-tourism-branson">Virgin Galactic's space tourists </a>to blast-off altitude. <br><br>The 12-second video of WhiteKnightTwo slowly taxiing down a runway at the <a href="http://www.mojaveairport.com/">Mojave Air and Spaceport</a> may not look that impressive, but according to Flight International it is the first time the outside world has seen WhiteKnightTwo moving under its own power. The magazine had offered a reward for footage of the tests.</p><p>The two-hulled aircraft, which will carry passengers in <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/jul/29/spacetechnology.theairlineindustry">SpaceShipTwo, was unveilled by Virgin Galactic</a> – Richard Brason's Spaceline – in July.</p><p><br>Under its own power from its two inboard Pratt &amp; Whitney Canada PW308A engines the four-engine experimental aircraft went to the end of Mojave spaceport's runway 30 turned around and went back to its designer Scaled Composites' hangar. Airport crash trucks had been positioned on either side of the runway, indicating an imminent taxi trial.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/15/aeronautics-spaceexploration">Continue reading...</a>AeronauticsSpaceScienceVirgin GroupTechnologyVirgin GalacticMon, 15 Dec 2008 17:39:21 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/15/aeronautics-spaceexplorationPhotograph: PRVirgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo spaceplane. Photograph: Virgin GalacticPhotograph: PRVirgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo spaceplane. Photograph: Virgin GalacticJames Randerson2008-12-15T17:39:21ZVirgin Galactic: Second space plane nearly didn't happenhttps://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/05/virgin-galactic-whiteknighttwo-spaceshipone
Customer demand for a weightless experience scuppered plans to use SpaceShipOne for passengers<p><a href="http://www.virgingalactic.com/">Virgin Galactic</a> is planning the first test launch of WhiteKnightTwo before Christmas. The two-hulled aircraft is the mothership that will – if all goes well – <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2007/dec/29/spaceexploration.northernlights">carry the rocket containing the first space tourists</a> to its blast-off point high above the ground.</p><p>But Richard Branson's space airline nearly did not go ahead with this second design phase. After <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2004/oct/05/scienceprizes.spaceexploration">SpaceShipOne scooped the $10m Ansari X-Prize</a> the plan was to stick with SpaceShipOne. The mothership/rocket combination of <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/jul/29/spacetechnology.theairlineindustry">WhiteKnightTwo</a> and SpaceShipTwo that the company is now working on nearly didn't happen. <br></p><p>This first group of customers said one thing to us that was really important. They said, 'if we are going to pay $200,000 to go into space we want to have space in the cabin – to experience weightlessness. We want to do what we've seen in the movies'.</p><p>They told us that as customers they weren't interested in going into space in this tiny little spaceship.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/05/virgin-galactic-whiteknighttwo-spaceshipone">Continue reading...</a>SpaceTechnologyAirline industryJames LovelockVirgin GalacticTue, 09 Dec 2008 16:26:57 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/05/virgin-galactic-whiteknighttwo-spaceshiponePhotograph: Stefano Paltera/APVirgin Galactic founder Sir Richard Branson celebrates the naming of WhiteKnightTwo "Eve", after his mother (left) in July. Photograph: Stefano Paltera/APPhotograph: Stefano Paltera/APVirgin Galactic founder Sir Richard Branson celebrates the naming of WhiteKnightTwo "Eve", after his mother (left) in July. Photograph: Stefano Paltera/APJames Randerson2008-12-09T16:26:57ZVideo: Branson's pledge to Virgin Galactic space touristshttps://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/08/virgin-galactic-space-tourism-branson
<strong>Video exclusive:</strong> Branson promises 'the most intense and wonderful experience our passengers have ever had' in video sent to future Virgin Galactic space tourists<p>If you are lucky enough to have $200,000 to spare and have signed up as one of Virgin Galactic's space tourists then this is the video Richard Branson will have sent you to whet your appetite.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/08/virgin-galactic-space-tourism-branson">Continue reading...</a>ScienceSpaceTechnologyVirgin GroupWorld newsTravelSir Richard BransonVirgin GalacticMon, 08 Dec 2008 11:46:41 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/dec/08/virgin-galactic-space-tourism-bransonJames Randerson2008-12-08T11:46:41ZFarewell to Phoenixhttps://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/nov/11/farewell-phoenix
Nasa's Martian probe has come to a dark and frigid end, but its dying gasp was 'triumph'<p>As the bitter Martian chill sinks into its metal innards, <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/phoenix/main/index.html">Phoenix</a> has <a href="http://twitter.com/Marsphoenix">twittered its last</a>. The plucky robotic lander that <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/science/mars">set off from Earth on August 4 2007 and landed on the red planet on May 25 this year</a> has finally come to the end of its mission – having almost doubled its planned operational life of three months.</p><p><a href="http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/11/mars-phoenix-re.html">But shutdown had to happen eventually.</a> The probe landed further north than any previous Martian lander and as winter sets in and the days shorten it is no longer receiving enough light during the day to charge its batteries. Dustier skies, more cloud cover and gathering cold also contributed to its demise.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/nov/11/farewell-phoenix">Continue reading...</a>ScienceMarsSpaceTechnologyTwitterRobotsWorld newsNasaTue, 11 Nov 2008 02:51:58 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2008/nov/11/farewell-phoenixPhotograph: PRImage: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/University of ArizonaPhotograph: PRImage: Nasa/JPL-Caltech/University of ArizonaJames Randerson2008-11-11T02:51:58ZHubble troublehttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2005/feb/07/hubbletrouble
<p>Looks like it might be time to say goodbye to a famous piece of technology, the Hubble telescope. <a href="http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&amp;storyID=7557289" title="Top News Article | Reuters.com">Reuters</a> has the story:</p><p>The U.S. space agency's total budget would rise 2.4 percent over 2005 to about $16.5 billion, but only $93 million would be spent on Hubble, with $75 million of that aimed at bringing the observatory down to Earth safely, NASA's comptroller said.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2005/feb/07/hubbletrouble">Continue reading...</a>TechnologyHubble space telescopeScienceSpaceMon, 07 Feb 2005 17:26:15 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2005/feb/07/hubbletroubleBobbie Johnson, technology correspondent2005-02-07T17:26:15Z